White Feathers
by SereneAquamarine
Summary: The first wedding ever to take place in Hyrule. "Zel, you're my best friend, and… I've fallen in love with you..." A short tale of how two friends recovered from the effects of the Goddess's Mission and, together, turned their lives in a new direction. SS LinkXZelda. Lots of fluffy moments! Reviews always appreciated! :) *NOW COMPLETE!*
1. Chapter 1: A Decision

**A/N: Hey all! After many years of inactivity, I have been randomly inspired to make yet another fluff filled story! This time it is Skyward Sword Zelink! Enjoy, and please review! :)**

**1/11/14 EDIT: I have edited out the prologue... Wasn't satisfied with it at all.**

**~Missa**

**Disclaimer:****The Legend of Zelda and its characters belong to Nintendo. This is a fan created story that is for entertainment purposes only.**

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**White Feathers**

_The First Wedding in Hyrule_

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_"Master, you must never leave Her_ Grace_ once she is rescued. My calculations conclude that you are the only one who will efficiently provide the feelings of comfort and love to her for the rest of her life. My calculations also conclude this applying to you, Master, and I estimate that you will have no problem accepting this position as her lifelong partner," the blue sword spirit whispered into her master's pointed ear before disappearing into the hilt of her blade._

_…._

_.._

_._

**Chapter 1: Decision**

They had always seemed to be joined at the hip. She would do the talking and he would do the work. She would get upset over something and he would carve her a small sculpture to make her feel better. He would get bullied by the other academy students and she would provide the words that he couldn't. They were a perfectly balanced couple, and the entire town could see that. But, as love is blind, the couple was completely oblivious to their radiating perfection.

Everyone knew they would eventually get married. The only questions were really when and how.

The only problem was the mission set into motion by Hylia that separated the two Skyloftians briefly and changed their lives forever. However, after the Goddess's Mission, the couple only cemented their already inseparable bond.

They decided to explore the surface before returning to visit their home in the clouds to help desensitize themselves to the new world after having some traumatic experiences there. As the days passed, their hearts and bodies slowly healed until they were once again healthy enough, but even so, terrible nightmares and irrational fears would still occasionally surface.

A guard of knights from Skyloft was established at the mighty Goddess Statue to watch over the sacred Triforce. A town was to be built around the Sealed Temple so that the Triforce could always be guarded. The surface become known as "Hyrule," named after Hylia's divine rule that saved the land from plunging into the hands of Demise.

It is around this time of settlement into the new land that the couple realized their lives had completely changed and they now had complete control of their fates. No longer controlled by Hylia's plan of separation, the couple could decide their own fate.

And this is where their story begins…

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Link blissfully glided with Zelda on their Loftwings through the summer air. The sun warmed their backs and the breeze whistled through their pointed ears. The sky seemed to be exceptionally cyan today. Zelda had been right: It was a perfect day for flying.

Zelda steered her bird up behind Link to be closer to him. "You know, Link, there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about for a while now…"Zelda began, speaking quite softly. Link turned around, puzzled. She was looking downwards, almost bashfully. It was unusual for Zelda to lose her loud, playful tone while she was exhilarated by the joy of flying.

Just then, the Loftwings screeched and Link turned his attention forward. A massive black tornado had formed. Seconds later, he felt himself being thrown off his loftwing and watched as Zelda plunged towards the tornado. "Link!" She yelled, barely audible over the deafening roars of the tornado and the maniacal cackling that suddenly rang through the boy's head. He yelled and reached out to her, but she was falling too quickly. "Link!" She yelled again, but she was too far to reach and falling quickly into the dark storm. The cackling's volume only increased until Link's head seemed to be filled with the creepy noise. He clasped his hands over his ears and screamed, "Zelda!"

"LINK!"

His eyes flew open and he instinctively bolted upward, reaching over his shoulder for his sword hilt, but a soft hand firmly pressed him backwards. There was no sword on his back to reach for. He looked up and saw Zelda's concerned face looking down at him. Concerned, but unharmed. He quickly realized he was laying in his bed inside the knight academy and it was the middle of the night.

"Zelda…" He quietly began, reaching out to her but she shushed him immediately and took his trembling hands between her own.

"Shh…. It was just a dream. Everything is okay."

She said this every time he awoke from a nightmare. And she was always there for him when he woke from one. Not one nightmare filled sleep had passed where she wasn't there to calm him. Likewise, he would always be there for her. It was incredibly strange, but they could sense when the other was having a rough night and one would wake up to go to check on the other. Zelda seemed to wake up more often, but she would often open the door to find a peacefully sleeping Link, much to her tired relief. She figured this was because she was more worried about him. He had been through many more traumatic experiences than she had, and he had reason to have more nightmares.

He looked at her now with shiny sapphire eyes that reflected the flickering yellow light of the candlestick Zelda had brought that sat on his desk. "I'm fine… I've had that one a lot before,"

She nodded her head and carefully tucked his blankets around him. "I thought the frequency of your nightmares were decreasing, but it seems like you have them every night now," she whispered softly, careful not to wake Fledge, who snored beyond the partition behind her.

He scratched his forehead with his free hand. "I think it's because I can't see you before I fall asleep." When she looked at him strangely, he continued. "I forget that you're safe. When we were exploring the surface, I could see you at our campsites before I fell asleep. But now we're back at the academy…"

They had been staying in Skyloft for a few days to relax after their adventures and wanted to visit briefly before beginning the settling process on the newly named surface.

Zelda gave a slight smile. "You know my father would freak out if he found me in here in the morning. I can't sleep in the same room as you, Link, he wouldn't have it. We aren't…_married_." It almost seemed like she had trouble saying the word. "He gave me a hard time when I told him we were exploring Hyrule all alone." She huffed. "I mean, we're pretty much seniors at the academy! Well, _you_ are one now. But we can take care of ourselves and we know our boundaries."

Link only grinned. "You'd think he would trust my instincts after I saved your life and the whole world and all." Zelda smiled at this.

"You'd think," she teased and ruffled his hair. "I love my father though and will respect him. I won't be caught in your room overnight unless we're married, Link. It _is_ one of Hylia's divine rules, and considering I have her memories, I know that... Anyways, you can see I'm safe, and I'm tired. Now close your eyes and don't open them again until morning. Good night, Link" she finished softly. He closed his eyes and gently squeezed her hand before she released hers from him. She quietly stepped out of the room, shut the door behind her, and silently tiptoed back to her room.

As Link silently lay there with his eyes closed, listening to the soft snores of Fledge just a few meters away, his mind began thinking about something strange. That was the first time Zelda ever brought up the idea of them being "_married_." It wasn't like she was saying she wanted it or anything, but it was the first time he had probably ever heard her say the word in context _with_ him. Of course, he had been there when she and Karane talked about their dream weddings with each other, but all girls loved talking about that stuff.

He rolled over on his right shoulder and felt a slight pain as one of his muscles tensed. An old injury. He remembered when Ghirahim had effortlessly slammed his spiked sword hilt into his shoulder blade during a teasing backhand swing in the Skyview Temple. He shook away the memory and refocused his mind onto his less agonizing, current thought train.

Zelda had always wanted some sort of special wedding. He remembered this because Karane had always prodded her to know what she meant when the subject was sometimes brought up during their nightly "study sessions" after sparring class. He, Zelda, Karane, and Fledge would bring their books and lay around the carpet and tea table to talk. These group meetings in Karane's room usually became mostly social before cramming studying together around midnight's curfew. When asked about her wedding during the conversation, Zelda would say, "I don't know, I just want it to be special in some way. It doesn't need to be fancy or expensive. Just special," and she had always shrugged in response.

Karane would then say, "But Zelda, every wedding is special because it only happens to those two people once!" And Zelda would again shrug her shoulders. Karane would then explain that she wanted a traditional Skyloftian wedding in which the bride and groom would say their vowels in the town center. Karane always said she wanted green Loftwing feathers scattered around and her feathery gown would be pure white with green and gold dyed feathers accenting it. Link had always thought that would be a pretty combination and wondered when the older student would get married so he could see her dream become reality.

Of course, during these girly conversations, he and Fledge never had an exciting answer for Karane about their "dream weddings." Fledge simply wanted to have a wedding that satisfied his wife, and Link just agreed with him. Karane would sigh and mutter "boys…" to these responses.

Marriages were exciting and wonderful occasions that the whole town would celebrate. The vowel ceremonies were followed by a releasing of a hundred paper lanterns into the sky to symbolize wishes of happiness and thankfulness to the Goddess. This was soon followed by dancing and music all night before the bride and groom rode away on a loftwing at daybreak to a distant luxurious island to spend a few days together alone, or, go on "a honeymoon," as the elders called it. But Zelda wanted something different. Link had not ever been able to think of a way to make a wedding more special in Skyloft since they were already a blast to attend.

But now, he thought of a way.

A wedding on the surface. The first wedding in Hyrule.

That would be Zelda's wedding.

This was her special wedding she always dreamed about. He smiled at his realization. She could get her dream wedding after all!

Now, who would she marry?

A sudden wave of emotion hit him like a blast of that creeper's diamond magic. He resisted the urge to open his eyes and dug the side of his nose into his feather pillow.

He had gone through terrifying trials and fought endless hordes of monsters to save her. He had done it because he couldn't bear to lose her. He would silently admit that he had a huge crush on her. Fi figured it out pretty quickly, as she had used this "evaluation" to motivate him to draw the goddess's sword in the first place. But no, as he thought about it, he wouldn't have dived under the clouds and stood up to the Demon King so readily for someone he just had a crush on.

He was in love with her.

Failing Zelda's request, he opened his eyes, staring at the wall. The room was now dark but a small crack of silver moonlight from under the window covering dared to shine through above his head.

He had been oblivious to his own feelings until now. Link knew he liked her but he had not really thought about it very deeply until now. She was always there for him. She always had been. She helped him when he needed it and scolded him when he deserved it. She always made him happy with her goofy habits and positive energy. She had been by his side helping him cope with the effects of the traumatic experiences he had gone through. Now she was excitedly preparing to live on the surface alongside him. She was perfect and he loved everything she did.

The thought of her marrying someone else made him physically cringe.

He didn't want her to leave him. Ever. But if she married someone else, she would have to. He scolded himself silently for how crazy and possessive he was thinking.

But then, he thought that this must be what it feels like to know that you've found _the one._ He had always heard the adults say "Oh, you'll know it when you've found her," and now he understood what they meant. He simply wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

But would she commit to him?

He knew they were mutually best friends. _I did save her life. She has to like me_, he thought, amused. Now that he thought about it, they did innocently flirt often before the Goddess's mission began. They had also hugged a lot, especially after finally reuniting when the Demon King was defeated.

His nightmare suddenly came back to him. He remembered Zelda saying something before the tornado incident. She had wanted to tell him something important but seemed shy about it.

Link rolled over again, uncomfortable. _Was she going to… confess her feelings? It couldn't have been that, but then… Why did she look so shy when I looked back?_ Link exhaled in a silent sigh. She was so confusing.

But if she did not like him, who else would she want to marry? Certainly not Groose, even though he matured exponentially over the past few months. Pipit was probably looking to marry Karane soon. Link had once overheard Zelda telling Karane that Fledge and also Groose's "henchmen" weren't really her type. There weren't really a lot of other males around Zelda's age on Skyloft.

She never really expressed to Link any interest in other boys before. On the other hand, Karane, as a child, had often used Link as a sneaky way to find out if boys she crushed on liked her back. Zelda had never asked Link for this kind of help. When it came to Zelda's taste in men, Link knew absolutely nothing.

Link smiled. He was overthinking this situation. He could just confess and if he got rejected, it wouldn't be the end of the world. _He had just prevented that._ He rolled over again and made a decision to make a leap of faith.

He could handle rejection if he could handle the Demon King. He just prayed it wouldn't make him lose his best friend forever.

He was going to propose to Zelda and they were going to have the first wedding in Hyrule.

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**A/N: Wooo! Link has made quite a drastic decision! I'm sorry this chapter consisted mostly of Link just laying in his bed thinking. More will happen in the next chapter, I promise! :)**


	2. Chapter 2: Planning

**Chapter 2: Planning**

Zelda tiredly walked into the kitchen to grab some breakfast before going to wake up Link. It had been a few days since his last nightmare. She grabbed a warm biscuit from the table and took a bite before walking down the hall to knock on Link's door. When no answer came, she opened the door, expecting to find Link snoozing in his bed.

He was gone.

She blinked. He was up and out before she was. _How strange, _she mused. Zelda didn't even have her boots on yet. She still wore her purple nightgown as she stood outside of Link's empty room. Link was already out of the academy for the day. Usually it was the other way around.

She took another bite out of her biscuit and walked to Fledge's door. When he answered that he wasn't sure where Link was, she shoved the rest of her biscuit in her mouth and hopped up the steps to change in her room. Link had been acting quiet—even for his usual self—awkward towards her ever since his nightmare the other night. She hoped he hadn't been scared mentally from it. Her anxiety increased as she worried about what he could possibly be doing this early in the morning.

Outside the academy, now dressed in her usual pink dress, Zelda scanned the grounds until she spotted Link talking to Pipit near the town center. She smiled and began jogging over to meet with them. Pipit seemed to notice her coming and then Link turned his head to look. Zelda waved at him. He gave her a weird smile and then suddenly sprinted off the dock and flew off into the sunlit clouds upon his Loftwing.

Zelda stopped jogging near Pipit. "What was that about? He couldn't even say good morning?"

Pipit chuckled. "Well, good morning, Zelda! He just has an errand to run. Don't mind him." When Zelda looked at him skeptically he then said, "He'll be back soon. He had to run to the surface for something." Zelda nodded and whistled for her dear Loftwing to land. She sat down and began grooming its feathers under the shadow of the nearby tower.

It wasn't like he _needed_ to tell her where he was all the time. He wasn't her boyfriend, technically. But ever since their adventure she knew things had changed. It was like they were a couple but neither of them had said anything about it or even attempted a kiss or anything too romantic. They both felt a little uneasy when they weren't together. They rarely parted ever since the Goddess's mission ended. It was, quite honestly, awkward. Zelda knew Link was still recovering over the shock of losing her, which probably resulted in his recent clinginess to her. But now that he had left her again, although briefly, for the first time since his quest, she felt strange.

Zelda gently stroked the blue feathers of her Loftwing. No, it wasn't a fear that he would never come back like some of the irrational fears that Link now occasionally suffered from. She always knew he would return. But it felt like she was missing a part of her when he was absent. Her right hand man was missing. She knew he'd be back shortly, but she still felt her heart ache for his presence.

Ever since the Goddess's mission started, her emotions had been flying all over the place like a crazed bird. She was happy to be safe, grieving over the loss of Impa, excited about discovering the surface, concerned about Link's health, fighting her own nightmares, and now loving every second she got to spend in Hyrule with her best friend. She thought she was dealing with these emotions relatively well but she was more always concerned about her best friend. _Some things never change_, she thought. She sighed loudly.

"You okay?" She jumped as someone asked. She hadn't realized Pipit was still in the town center, watching her fuss over her bird. Pipit had noticed her grimacing face. He was polishing his sword on one of the nearby benches. Zelda eyed it and wondered if the sword had ever seen serious combat.

"Oh! Yes, I'm fine Pipit. Don't worry," Zelda gifted him with a grin, which he returned with a slightly unsure look. "Really, I am doing well. It's Link who I'm always worried about." She lowered her voice, "He's been acting a bit strange for the past few days and now he has run off without telling me where he is going!"

Pipit smirked. "You speak of him like he's your husband of many years." Zelda flushed and Pipit laughed. "Only kidding, Zelda." A breeze trickled through his short brown hair as his face turned more serious. "I know you have reason to be concerned. You know, we've all been worried about you guys since you returned… If you ever need to talk, my ears are always available. So are Karane's." He sheathed his sword and stood.

Zelda nodded, "Thanks Pipit."

Pipit bowed. "I have to go practice sparring with Fledge now. Be easy on Link," he said with a twinkle in his eye and another mysterious smirk.

Zelda waved and then continued grooming her bird. _What was that look for? _She was beginning to believe everyone was hiding something from her. First Link's odd behavior, now Pipit giving him smirks—a behavior very unlike his usual chivalrous self—who else would treat her strangely today?

Was there something wrong with her? Had she really changed since acquiring Hylia's memories? Were her friends not accepting her anymore?

She took a deep breath._ No, everything is fine._ _I need to clear my head, _she thought and jumped on the back of her beloved Loftwing. "Come on, friend, we're going out for a quick flight." The Loftwing chirped in delight as it stretched its wings and, with a powerful down stroke, rose into the warm morning sky.

Link landed on the soft soil of Hyrule with a _thump_. He glanced up to see the proud Goddess Statue overlooking him and then turned to see the Sealed Temple that was to his right. It was still standing sturdily.

He knew the Master Sword, where Fi slept, was hidden behind the secure doors. Smiling solemnly at the doors, he began to walk from his landing spot. He missed Fi. She was a nice companion to have during his quest and she became a powerful sword along the way. Currently he was carrying a new sword that the senior academy students received after graduating. It was a good sword and fit him well, but it was nothing like the Master Sword's perfection in his hands.

Down the hill in front of him were a few Skyloftians that were in the beginning stages of planning a small community around the temple. Link spotted Groose looking over a plan for the community with some of the elders of Skyloft. The traveling Goron who Link had met on his quest was also present; He was conversing excitedly with the people who came down from the sky.

Link caught Groose's eye and waved him over. Link grinned at how strange it felt to have his former bully as a friend. "How are you doing, hero?" Groose asked, leaving the elders to speak with Link alone.

"I'm fine, but I need your viewpoint on an idea I have." Link said.

Groose raised an eyebrow at this and smoothed his cherished pompadour. "Well, shoot it at me then," he said, cracking his neck.

Link closed his eyes and nervously took a deep breath. The past few days were filled with daydreaming about marrying Zelda and how he could propose. It had even caused him a few awkward moments and for him to stay quiet in fear of spilling the birdseeds to her. But right now he needed to get Groose to comply with his decision. He had no idea how Groose would react.

"I'm going to propose to Zelda."

Groose only stared at him. After several seconds under his blank, yellow gaze, Link braced himself for impact.

"Yep. Okay. And… what else? You want my help thinking of a way to do it?" he responded, apparently unfazed.

Link was shocked. "You mean…. You're perfectly okay with this?!"

Groose smiled in his weird way. "Link, I knew you wanted to be with Zelda more than I ever did the first time I saw you take down the imprisoned demon. You deserve a wonderful girl like her. There are plenty of other birds in the air for me." He folded his arms and snickered. "I myself am surprised at how willingly I gave up on her after seeing your heroic deeds. I guess my time with Granny made me realize that there are bigger things for me out there to do before I worry about finding a wife. You, on the other hand, have done your work and deserve to settle down."

Link felt like he was about to fall over. This seriousness was coming from Groose. _Groose_ of all people! "Well… um. Thanks. I'm glad I have your approval."

"Have you gotten her father's approval?"

Link blinked. "Not yet. That's the next thing on my list."

Groose grinned. "That's an important thing to get before you start making any elaborate plans." He lightly punched Link's shoulder. "Well, lover boy, if you want help scheming, I suppose I can lend a hand."

Link's eyes glinted in the light. "Pipit already agreed to help me as well. I'll get back to you soon to talk. Until then, I have to prepare some other things." Groose nodded, and Link bid him good-bye for the moment. He then went to find a Bird Statue to return to Skyloft.

Zelda's Loftwing circled the Lumpy Pumpkin until it landed softly in the grass in order to allow its rider to dismount. Zelda thanked her bird, entered the eating establishment, and inhaled the relaxing scent of pumpkin. She found Karane seated at a table and decided to join her. "Hey Karane."

Karane looked up from the book about the surface that she had borrowed. "Hey Zel! Just reading about the surface…er… Hyrule. I have to get used to calling it by its new name."

Zelda smiled. She was so excited that other people were finally taking interest in and even moving to the new world she had dreamed about for so long.

"I plan to move down there when the town is built," explained Karane. "I haven't visited it yet. Gotta finish up my final sparring exams for the academy first." Kina then approached and asked what Zelda wanted to eat.

"It's beautiful down there," Zelda said after ordering. "I plan on living near the Goddess statue to make sure the Triforce is always guarded."

Karane smiled warmly. "You know, everyone looks to you when they seek knowledge about the surface and the Triforce. You've really become a leader among us." Her eyes lit up. "You can like, be the Queen of Hyrule!"

Zelda shook her head shyly. "I couldn't reign over a kingdom! I mean… I have a vast knowledge thanks to Hylia… but I'm so young! Besides, I'm not even married. I would have to be a Princess," she added, smiling.

Karane leaned back in her chair and giggled. "Princess Zelda. I like the sound of it. I think I'll call you that from now on. That would make your father the High King of Hyrule." Zelda also giggled to this.

"All you need is a knight in shining armor," Karane gushed, closing her eyes. She sighed and then opened her eyes in realization. "Oh wait, you already have one!"

Zelda blushed. "Shush. So do you, Karane!"

They continued teasing each other until Zelda's pumpkin soup arrived and she was quieted by the warm liquid sweetness. _She wouldn't mind considering Link her Prince, _she thought to herself, amused.

After making small talk for a while with Karane, Zelda decided to return to the main island to see if Link had returned yet. She spotted his Crimson Loftwing perched near the waterfall and knew that he had to be back.

She landed near the bazaar and began walking towards the academy when suddenly, Link burst through the doors before her. He looked positively euphoric over something. A wild grin spread over his face as he dashed happily outside. He then noticed Zelda standing before him. He spread his arms apart and gave her a tight hug.

"Hi Zel," he said in a tone dripping with glee. She was surprised by his random behavior but hugged him back anyways because it felt so nice.

He squeezed her gently before releasing her and then stepped back as he seemed to realize what he had just done. "Um. Sorry about that." He blushed and scratched his head. "I'm gonna go out for a while. I need to run a few more errands at the bazaar. I'm not leaving Skyloft so don't fret over me." He then passed Zelda before she could come up with a word of response.

Zelda stood in front of the academy doors alone now. She was completely confused. He had gone from awkwardly quiet to questionably drugged within a few hours. _What has gotten into him lately?_

She decided to follow him.

After all, it wasn't like she was doing anything wrong. It was a free island. She could go to the bazaar if she wanted to.

After giving him some time to walk out of earshot, she walked to the back entrance of the bazaar that she knew he would not use. Upon entering the dimly lit building, she quickly ducked into the fortune teller's kiosk—a service she knew Link would pay no attention to. Fortunately, the fortune teller seemed to be on his lunch break so she fit in the small ornamented tent. _That, or he foresaw my need to hide here, _Zelda mused to herself. She looked through the small gap that the tent flaps allowed and searched the main area of the bazaar. There were quite a few people buying supplies and the merchants were extremely busy selling supplies for people planning to travel to Hyrule.

Zelda then saw the dim silhouette of Link leaning on Gondo the mechanic's table. She couldn't make out what he was saying because of all the chatter or see what materials were laying on the counter. They seemed to be discussing something important, from the quiet tone that Gondo used. Usually he could be heard easily over a crowd, but Link seemed to have quieted him for some reason. She knew Gondo could fix Link's equipment and shields or forge small items out of his treasures. But what could Link possibly want now that his quest was over? To Zelda's knowledge, he hadn't fought any enemy's since his return to Skyloft, so none of his tools should have been damaged.

She squinted to try to see the counter better but people in the bazaar kept obstructing her view of Link. After a few minutes, she gave up and slipped back out of the bazaar, unnoticed by Link or Gondo. _What in the world is causing all of this weird, secretive behavior?_ pondered Zelda, sadly.

She just wanted Link to act himself again.

**A/N: Poor Zelda! She's getting so paranoid over nothing! What could Link possibly be talking to Gondo about...? Find out in...the next chapter! *da da daa daaaa***


	3. Chapter 3: Proposal

**Chapter 3: Proposal**

Zelda sat with her bare feet dangling in the river. It was mid-afternoon and she had not seen Link for hours. She felt something rub against her elbow and looked down to find a Remlit purring beside her. "Oh hey, Mia. You're not going to treat me strangely, are you?" Her pet simply gazed back at her with large glassy eyes. Zelda smiled and lifted the animal into her lap to cuddle it.

A breeze sifted through her golden locks as she watched the sun's reflections swirl on the water's surface. "People have been acting weird around here. Is it something against me, or is it because of Hyrule? Or both?" She spoke aloud to herself, stroking the cat-like creature's fur. She shook her head. Why was she so paranoid lately? Link would usually help her sort through her thoughts, but he seemed to be acting the strangest of all of them lately. Even her father had looked at her a little funny earlier. Karane seemed to be her only sane friend on Skyloft.

She had planned on returning to the surface with Link in the next few days, but now she felt like she didn't know where she wanted to go. She was so confused between Link's avoidant spontaneous behavior and the way people kept smirking and teasing her. She almost wanted to leave Skyloft permanently and fly off to a distant corner of Hyrule.

But Karane had told her she was becoming their leader. Perhaps that explained the weird looks. And Link? Maybe he was just going through a phase…. Boys will be boys…

Zelda looked down at her pet. "What do you think, Mia?" The remlit blinked and then yawned before getting up and softly walking away. Now left completely alone, Zelda got up and decided she was going to confront Link.

Link took a deep breath as he exited the bazaar that evening and pocketed his new item. Gondo created it in just a few hours. It had cost him a good amount of rupees to construct, but he still had a large amount of money saved in his bank account at Peatrice's stand. He felt a little bad for avoiding Zelda the past few days, but he knew it was necessary to keep his plan a secret from her. He had trouble keeping secrets from her, so it was the only way to prevent his plan from being revealed prematurely. At least he had gotten the enthusiastic approval from Zelda's father. He was clear for take-off!

The plan was to be set in motion the next morning. Pipit, Groose, and Karane were all in on it. It was a good scheme that they had put their heads together to create while Zelda was not inside the academy that afternoon. He was extremely nervous about how it would go and was silently praying for a miracle.

He stepped into the academy hall and went to the dining room only to find Zelda eating at the table alone. "Hey Zelda," he ventured, quietly, walking over to a counter to prepare a sandwich.

Her blue eyes locked on his. "Oh, hey Link."

"If you're mad about me leaving you alone earlier… I'm sorry."

Zelda sighed. "No. Don't worry about it. Did you get those errands done?"

"I did. Tomorrow I have nothing else to do, so we can relax a little together before we go back to the surface."

"Mhmm," Zelda grunted, chewing a piece of her sandwich.

Link looked up from cutting his lettuce. "Mad at me?"

Zelda swallowed and stared at the table for a second. "Honestly, a little. People have been treating me strangely, including you. You've been avoiding me. Why?" She regarded him directly in the eyes.

It was so hard to lie to her when she did that. Link looked into her sad blue eyes and noticed that she looked extremely exhausted. Had she been not sleeping well? Why hadn't he sensed this? She was still as beautiful as ever, even while sitting at the table with only the light of the fireplace outlining her body with a flickering hue. He returned the sad look. "I'm sorry. I've just had some things I've needed to do before we go back to the surface, and they've been stressing me out. I didn't really realize what my actions were doing to you." He felt like that was an acceptable response without revealing any of his secret plan.

She sighed and didn't say anything for a long moment. "You promise we can relax together tomorrow?"

He smiled. "I promise." Although he knew he would not be relaxed at all until his plan had fully finished.

She finished her food and took her plate to the sink to wash it. "Good." She ran the water over her ceramic plate as Link finished making his sandwich. "I look forward to it. Until then, I'll be in my room." She finished cleaning her plate and set it aside to be completely disinfected by Henya later.

Link smiled as she left but knew he wasn't completely out of the birdcage just yet. He had little spats with Zelda in the past and he knew she couldn't stay angry for long. But he usually caved first and did something for her to make up for it.

Hopefully his grand scheme in the morning would suffice.

…

The sun was already up when Zelda awoke the next morning. She had slept slightly better than the night before but was still tired. Today was the day she and Link were supposed to leave and travel back down to the surface to help plan the new community. But Link had promised her some relaxation time together before they went.

She changed into her favorite dress and prepared for the day. As she was combing her hair, she heard Karane enter her side of the room from the over the partition. "Morning Zel," Karane said. "You're heading back to Hyrule, right?"

"Yep," Zelda replied, looking in the direction of Karane's voice while she tied ribbons in her hair.

"I think Pipit was looking for you," said Karane, suddenly. "Something about your bird."

Zelda stopped fidgeting with her hair. "My Loftwing?"

"Yeah. I think he said he noticed something weird about it the other day and wanted you to bring it to him this morning while he has time to look it over. He is an expert on them, you know." Karane explained through the wall. "He's outside near the main dock right now."

Zelda blinked. "Alright. I'll go find him as soon as I'm done getting ready. I hope it's not serious,"

"I hope so too," Karane replied. The senior student silently giggled to herself. It was about to get _very serious._

Zelda left her room and walked outside, whistling for her Loftwing. The bird gracefully landed beside her and she patted its beak. "Come on, you have a check-up with Pipit," The bird followed her to the town center, where Pipit was practicing his sword slashes alone.

When he saw them approaching, he smiled. "Ah, Zelda, I see Karane got the message to you. You see, I noticed something odd about your bird's balance the other day as it flew over. I wanted to check its feathers out and make sure it hasn't accidently flown into anything damaging."

Little did Zelda know, Pipit had pulled this entire diagnosis out of his foot five minutes earlier and there was nothing wrong with her Loftwing. But as she recalled, Pipit was an expert on the special birds so she agreed to let him hop on her bird's back to begin inspecting it.

Now without a bird of transportation, Zelda simply watched Pipit carefully examine each feather extremely closely. She sighed. This was going to take a while.

She sat down on the edge of the dock at the suggestion of Pipit, who told her the view of the morning light on the clouds was exceptionally beautiful from that spot. Her feet daintily hung over the edge of the wooden platform as she looked down at the world below. The cloud barrier had faded and so she could see Hyrule spread out before her. The land was bathed in the sunlight's warmth. She could see Lake Floria sparkling below her and even the great volcano was visible in the distance.

Suddenly, a force from behind pushed her forward and she fell towards the land below. She let out a yell, and before she could whistle for her loftwing, another one snatched her gently in its large talons. She tried to look up and see which one it was, but she could barely see as the wind was swirling her hair in front of her face. The rider of the Loftwing was wearing a poorly made Goron mask but there was a single puff of red hair visibly sticking up behind it. "Groose! What are you doing?! Take me back!" Zelda yelled over the wind, but there was no answer. His bird was diving towards the world below and Zelda watched, horrified, as trees quickly whipped past below her. She had no idea where he was taking her.

After a few minutes that seemed like hours to Zelda, the bird began slowing and lowering into a clearing in the woods. It gently placed Zelda on a soft pile of grasses and then quickly flew off.

"Groose! If this is some sort of joke, I'll get you for it!" Zelda yelled as the Loftwing flew away. She looked down at the unnatural pile of soft grass and leaves that had cushioned her landing. _What an elaborate prank. _She then realized that she was somewhere in the middle of Faron Woods all by herself. She had no way to defend herself, and Link was probably still asleep up in Skyloft.

She thought about calling her Loftwing to retrieve her, but then she noticed something peculiar.

A flower.

It wasn't just any flower. It was an Ancient Flower. Zelda could tell by its distinctive purple color. She had learned from Impa that they existed only in a past era but could be retrieved by using the time changing stones in the Lunayru region. _How did an ancient flower get here? Someone brought it? She wondered._

In fact, there was an entire path of Ancient Flowers leading down a trail between the trees in front of her. She concluded that these flowers were meant for her to take. Zelda decided to pick them up as she followed their path.

As she followed the tree-lined trail, a bouquet began forming in her hands. She began hearing the trickle of water and realized that she must be near the lake. Blessed Butterflies fluttered around her as she continued down the flower trail. The atmosphere felt absolutely magical. Zelda began to forget her anger from being kidnapped by Groose and instead started wondering what was at the end of her journey.

She noticed that the path was beginning to slope downwards and soon realized the path opened up to a large clearing in the woods. Zelda looked around and found Lake Floria off to the right. The waterfalls were visible and their roaring crash was still audible but not overpowering from here. The clearing was covered in soft grass and there were a few moss covered boulders around the perimeter. The trees surrounding the clearing still filtered the sunlight, so only splotches of sunlight were visible on the ground. In the trees encircling the area hung little Skyloftian paper lanterns with candles flickering inside. Even though it was morning, the shade of the forest was still dark enough to allow the candles to provide a mysterious glow. Zelda wondered why someone had decorated this place and led her here.

Finally, her gaze settled on a small wooden chest in the middle of the clearing. She approached it and set her bouquet next to it, kneeling down. As she placed her hands on the small chest, two blessed butterflies playfully swirled around her kneeling body.

The chest wasn't locked, so she was able to open it. There was a small piece of parchment inside. Zelda stood up and unfolded the piece of paper.

_Turn Around_

Zelda looked at the note in the scratchy handwriting she knew she had seen somewhere before. She slowly turned to face whatever was waiting behind her.

Link was leaning against a tree near the path she had just taken to get to get there, smiling at her.

She opened her mouth in surprise. "Link… did you do all this? …It's lovely…" She watched as he quickly closed the gap between them in a few strides.

He looked at her, his face slightly flushed in embarrassment. "You wanted some relaxation time. So I found the perfect place to relax. I found this place during…. My quest. I wanted to bring you here someday."

She smiled. "It's so gorgeous," she looked around, admiring the peaceful atmosphere. She then realized that they were completely alone, and looked back up at Link. His expression had suddenly morphed into a very serious one. She had seen this face many times while he was concentrating during sparring class and even in the brief moments that they were reunited during the Goddess's mission. He only made it when he was under extreme stress but also intense focus. "Link, what's wrong? Are you-"

Link put his hand on gently her cheek, silencing her. He had never done anything like this before. She could feel the warmth of his fingers on her cheek where his glove failed to cover. His face softened.

"Zelda," he began. He took a deep breath.

_What is he so nervous about_?

"I just…. I wanted to bring you here because this place reminded me… of you," She gave him a look. "N-no, I mean. It made me feel happy. It's one of the most beautiful things I've found in this world. Just like you," He was gazing into her eyes as he said this. She gasped a little at his genuineness.

"And," he nervously continued and gestured around him. "There aren't any monsters here. It's just the trees, grass, and waterfalls. Perfectly serene." He looked back at Zelda, who was still a little stunned at his previous comment, and took her hand with his left one. "I never really wanted to leave this place when I found it. It's so peaceful and it helped me refocus during my quest." He swallowed. "Just like how I never want to leave you."

He suddenly got down on his left knee. Zelda covered her mouth as her eyes widened. _Oh my gosh! He's not going to…!_

Link closed his eyes for a second and then looked up at his beloved. "Zelda…. I know we've been through so much together. And… we've been best friends forever. I don't want that to ever change, and you once told me that as well." He reached into his endlessly extendable travel pouch and pulled out a small box. Zelda felt her heart beat racing.

"I think you know what I'm trying to ask you already… But I want to spend the rest of my life with you." He opened the box for her to see. "Zel, you're my best friend, and… I've fallen in love with you. Would you please marry me?"

Zelda's heart was beating so hard she felt like she was going to have a heart attack. She couldn't even remember how to speak. She was so surprised! She always knew she was going to be with Link forever but… she had somehow forgotten he could actually love her back. She smiled widely as her eyes teared up. "Yes!" She finally said. "Yes, of course, Link! I love you too!" She flung her arms around his neck after he slid the small ring on her finger. The band was crafted from an amber relic and a dusk relic while a small white gemstone accented the ring.

Link stood up and gave her the tightest hug he could without physically hurting her. "I'm so sorry for avoiding you the past few days, Zel. I didn't want to give this secret away accidentally." His muffled words said into her shoulder.

Zelda pulled back and placed her hand on his cheek. "All is forgiven." She then closed the gap between them and they shared their first romantic kiss. Their kiss deepened before they finally had to stop to avoid passing out.

It was the long overdue kiss of a couple destined to be together after the Goddess's mission had separated them for so long.

...

..

.

**A/N: LOL I think that was the fluffiest thing I've ever written! It's currently 4am, and I'm pretty sure this is the best quality I can do at this hour for now. XD I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I'm not the best at romantic scenes but I think this was pretty good for me! I hope you liked it. Up next is the wedding plans, of course! I'll be wrapping this fic up in the next few chapters. Until next time~**


	4. Chapter 4: Scars and a Dress

**A/N: I felt like this story needed a small dose of seriousness and action after that last fluff-filled chapter. (That doesn't mean there won't be more fluff in this chapter though! XD) Wow, this fic is turning out a lot longer than I expected! It may wrap up in the next 2-3 chapters. BUT THAT MAY CHANGE... anyways, enjoy this chapter! I think it may be my favorite so far. :)**

**Chapter 4: Scars and a Dress**

Zelda could barely contain her excitement. As soon as Link's Loftwing retrieved her from the private grove and returned her and Link to Skyloft, the girl raced to the academy to show everyone her new ring and share the news. By the time Link opened the front doors, half of the academy had heard Zelda's excited giggles as she raced up the steps to tell her father.

After congratulating the couple, the teary-eyed headmaster patted Link's shoulder and said, "I'm happy for you both. You'll make a wonderful husband for my daughter, Link." Link beamed at this.

Karane and Pipit were especially excited; Karane gushed congratulatory compliments and hugged them both tightly. Pipit patted Link on the back in approval and gave Zelda a hug as well.

After the news spread of their engagement, Link and Zelda were flooded with visits by everyone in town. Those doing construction down in Hyrule even dropped by on their Loftwings to congratulate the couple. It seemed to Link that the entire town was ecstatic; it was as if the townspeople had been waiting for this moment for years.

That afternoon, the young couple sat on the steps overlooking the town center. Their hands were intertwined as Zelda excitedly babbled about her excitement. Link was only half listening, as he was still basking in the knowledge that the girl who he wrapped his arm around was now his fiancé.

"…been dreaming this moment would happen since-hey, are you okay, Link?" Zelda looked at him and asked at one point.

Link blinked and looked back at her, embarrassed. "Hm? Oh sorry, I'm still in a daze. You have no idea how much stress has been lifted off my shoulders. I'm listening…"

Zelda smiled and hugged him tightly. "It is okay, Link. I'm excited too." Suddenly her eyes got very wide. "The wedding," she gasped. "We have to make plans! Oh, when will we find the time!? We have to start building our homes in Hyrule!"

"Our home," Link smiled at the thought of building his future home with Zelda.

Zelda returned his smile. "Yes, our home… But the wedding has to be first! Oooh… How will we decide on everything and—" Link put a finger to her mouth and clasped her hand with his free one.

"Zelda, I think our wedding should be in Hyrule. You know, it'll be special, like you always wanted. The first wedding on the surface." Link watched Zelda's mouth open as she enthusiastically nodded at his suggestion. He continued, "I just want you to be happy. You can make all of the arrangements. While you work on that, I can handle helping out on the surface. At this point in the construction, we should have more than enough bird-power to keep the pace up. The plans for the town have already been approved by you, so all we have to do is build the structures."

Zelda smirked. "I've only seen you make animal carvings. It'll be interesting to see you build houses." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Alright. There's a lot of work that we both need to do! I want to wed as soon as possible!" She smiled before jumping up and lightly skipping inside to find Karane and Henya.

Link left Skyloft the following morning to help out with construction of the town on the surface. He was surprised when he finally glimpsed the plans and realized that a castle was to be constructed around the Goddess Statue. Upon arriving at the Sealed Grounds, he noticed many Gorons assembled to aid in the moving of thousands of massive stones that had arrived. It turned out that the Goron who was intrigued by the sky people had many friends. They, with help of the Mogma tribe, had transported carts filled with stone resources from the Eldin region to use as their thanks for saving Hyrule. The Kikwi were helping to create strong ropes out of vines they had collected.

As he stepped in front of the sealed temple, Link found Groose sending groups of people off to begin work. Zelda had placed him in charge of managing the workers while the elders from Skyloft oversaw the plans. Link set his supplies under a tree. He then removed his tunic and hat, rolled up his pants to his knees and tightened his boots. He knew he was going to get sweaty from working in the heat of summer without the breezes he was used to in Skyloft. He did, however, strap his seniority sword onto his back. Even though he knew that monsters wouldn't dare approach the busy Skyloftians, he didn't yet feel like he could trust being on the surface without a weapon.

The Gorons would be doing most of the work on the castle, which was projected to take many years to complete. The Sealed Temple would also be receiving a facelift. The exterior would be rebuilt out of Eldin stone and hand-crafted stained glass windows made by the Skyloftian artists would be installed. The architects who designed the building wanted to stress the protection and importance of the gate of time and the Master Sword. Small stone foundations of many small buildings close to the temple had already been placed and workers were already raising the wooden skeletons of the structures.

Link walked over to Groose to see how he could help. Groose eyed his exposed muscles, briefly, and then smirked. "Well, your majesty, don't you think you should leave the work to the townspeople?" When Link gave him a bewildered stare, he snorted. "Well, you're marrying a Goddess. You're pretty much our king. Or something."

Link rolled his shoulders impatiently. "I am just as much of a citizen of this town as you are. Point me in a direction to start in and I'll get to work." Groose rolled his eyes and pointed to a structure that several people were working on. The studs and joists had all been placed. The roof was being constructed. Link trotted over and nimbly maneuvered onto the roof with ease. He grabbed a hammer from his pouch and began pounding nails into the roof at the instruction of one of the workers.

Several hours passed before Link felt his throat beginning to protest from the lack of water flowing inside. A summer afternoon sun had been heating his back all day. The roof was done and it was time to move on to building the next building. Link wiped his brow with his arm and climbed down from the roof. His throat seemed to be silently screaming at him now, so he went to his pile of things under the nearby tree to fetch a bottle of water and fruit he brought. He sat under the shade of the tree, felt sweat cool his body, and allowed himself a short break.

As he leaned against the tree, he watched Groose, Stritch and Cawlin install a stone foundation several meters across from the building Link had just helped complete. It was a bit entertaining to watch Cawlin and Stritch struggle to lift the heavy stones. Link smiled as he remembered how hard that had been when he first started his mission. He had eventually built up his arm muscles from combat and climbing around through dungeons and temples. Sighing, he bit into the stamina fruit he held.

He looked down at his bare chest. There were still many scars plainly visible on his pale skin. The first one, a small mark on his left shoulder, had been received upon being rescued by his Loftwing from Ghirahim's magic tornado. He was unconscious after impacting the storm, but he was pretty sure that his Loftwing had caught him in the talons and dug a claw into his shoulder because of the chaotic catch. Many of the random scars on his chest and back had been from getting hit from clubs and swords from random monsters early on in his quest. These weren't as severe, luckily. His arms had slightly worse scars on his biceps from where the chainmail had failed to cover. A large remnant of a gash was visible on his right arm from where he had been clipped by a Stalfo's sword on the Sand Ship. But some of the worst marks had come from Ghirahim and Demise, his toughest opponents by far.

Ghirahim had left a large gash on his right shoulder blade during their first clash with a direct hit from his sword. Back then, Link did not have much experience with _real_ combat and he blamed himself for giving Ghirahim the easy opening. Link could still remember the sharp pain, ripping sensation, and the feeling of his own trickling blood followed by Ghirahim's sadistic giggling in his ear. _And that tongue._ He was lucky he had some red potion to ease the bleeding after the battle, but the wound had left lasting pain behind. There was a small cut that had left a scar on his left cheek from one of his encounters with the Demon Lord as well, but he couldn't recall which.

On the other hand, Link had faced Demise at the end of his mission and had thus acquired many prior weeks of intense combat experience. Even so, he had several scars on his sides from the burns of lightning bolts that had dared too close. Demise had also managed to get a demonic swipe of his abdomen that struck even through his protective chainmail. This was perhaps his most noticeable and distinctive scar. It was jagged and spread from the top of his right hip, crossed his abdomen, and stopped on the left of his pectoral. He had to drink two bottles of red potion and use a fairy before he got that injury to stop bleeding.

_Look at who you've become. You're an ugly mess, Link, _he thought to himself with a sad smile. After finishing the fruit, his energy returned and stood up to go help raise the walls of the next building

….

Dressed in an emerald strapless dress, Zelda stood in the dining hall of Skyloft's academy, surrounded by a group of females who were taking measurements of her body and chattering about fabrics and dresses. The construction of Zelda's wedding dress would take the longest amount of preparation out of all of the wedding requirements, so the elder females had requested to begin their sewing immediately. Henya, the elder woman who worked in the academy's kitchen, was scratching down Zelda's measurements as the other women measured around the Spirit Maiden's body. Karane, Orielle, and Kina sat at the table with Piper and young Kekiel. Goselle and Mallara—Pipit's mom—were telling Henya each of Zelda's numbers. The women were excitedly discussing the dresses they envisioned Zelda wearing.

"Ooooh I can see you in a sleek sparkly white dress. We can use fairy dust for the sparkles!"

"Naw, I see her in a big poofy dress with lots of lace and ruffles."

"I think she should go with something simple. An elegant white dress with a pickup style skirt."

"Something with a diamond pattern. It has to be FABULOUS."

"AWWW I WANNA PRETTY DRESS TOO!"

Zelda giggled as the ideas were tossed around. Ultimately, it was her design to pick. She wished Link was there to help. With his natural artistic abilities, he could sketch a dress and adjust it for Zelda until she thought it was perfect. But of course, he wasn't allowed to see her dress until the wedding. She sighed, still feeling blissful about her future. Looking down at her engagement ring, she grinned. She knew the women's group effort could produce a design she loved.

"You know, Zelda, we will incorporate some of your Loftwing's feathers into the dress as well. Have you thought about that?" Henya asked as the last measurement was recorded.

Zelda nodded. "Yes, I think I know how I want them." She began describing her vision as Henya wrote her words down. Karane whipped out a piece of parchment and tackled the monstrous task of drawing the dress. Zelda smiled and took her quill, adjusting the sketch to the best of her abilities. The girls gasped as the dress Zelda was envisioning began to manifest on the paper. She even sketched her veil's design.

"It's beautiful," breathed Goselle as Zelda finished her rough drawing. "It is among the most stunning of all designs I have seen…" She smiled. "I'm so excited to begin work on this!" The rest of the women nodded.

It was a tradition to have some women of Skyloft create the wedding dress while the bride made sure the design was perfect. The women would ultimately make each of their friends' wedding dresses over the years. This way, the women had plenty of social time together, away from the men, and formed strong bonds that stayed for the rest of their lives. Zelda thought it was a beautiful tradition and she wanted to keep it for her Hyrule wedding.

Zelda looked to Karane as the women began gathering materials and spreading fabric on the table. Even little Kekiel already knew how to sew a little. "Karane, would you like to come with me elsewhere? I think they'll need the whole kitchen today! Who knows where the students will eat come dinner tonight?"

Karane agreed to go with Zelda and followed the Goddess Reborn up to her bedroom. On the way up, Karane chatted with Zelda about how excited Pipit was to take his first knightly duty in Hyrule to protect the Triforce the next day.

Zelda shut the door and they sat on some of the soft pillows lying on the ground. Zelda smiled and put her hand on Karane's shoulder. "Karane, you've been a wonderful friend and roommate over the years and I know I am making a good decision when I ask; will you play the Goddess at my wedding?"

Karane laughed. "Zelda… aren't _you_ the Goddess or something? Wouldn't that be…uh, strange?"

Zelda lightly smiled. "I have her memories, but I'm still Zelda. I may have some sort of divine soul and maybe some sort of magic, but I am no Goddess. Besides, I really want you to be a special part of my wedding."

Karane put her palm to her chin and beamed. "Well, I would be honored, Zelda!" She sat up straight. "So, what kind of plans are we talking about? We've been daydreaming about this our entire lives! This is your day, Zel."

Zelda laughed. "You know, I always thought, since you're older, that you'd get married first. So I was going to see what you did and figure out what I liked from yours and what I wanted to do. I honestly don't know what I want it to be like, besides the fact that it'll be in Hyrule."

Karane found a piece of parchment on Zelda's desk. "Well, let's start brainstorming, then."

Several hours later, the sun had moved in the sky, and Zelda came up with a few ideas she liked with Karane. She told her friend she wanted to let them set in her mind overnight and talk again in the morning.

Zelda walked by the kitchen and saw that the ladies had made some progress on her dress. They had constructed a simple stand for it to hang from and she saw the soft architecture of her dress forming slowly as the women operated. Zelda teared up a little as she saw them working. She had only once gotten the opportunity when she was young to help with Piper's wedding dress, and back then she couldn't even do much to help. But she remembered how thrilling it still was and now she watched as Kekiel excitedly observed Piper's work and played with the purple feathers plucked from Zelda's Loftwing that laid on the table.

Zelda turned and left out the front door of the academy. She adjusted the top of her dress and squinted as she walked towards the setting sun. It casted a warm orange glow over Skyloft. She knew it had been a hot day so she grabbed a stamina fruit from a tree nearby and placed it in her flying bag. She then leapt off the dock and called her bird, who carried her gently down to the Sealed Grounds.

She looked around and saw several buildings standing around her. They were in no ways complete, but their wooden skeletons were built and the roofs finished. They looked habitable, just not completely weatherproof yet. She felt a jolt of excitement at the realization that she was actually starting to see a real town forming in Hyrule.

Zelda stepped quietly through a narrow grassy area between the wooden structures. Eventually, a road would probably be placed under her feet. The empty shell of the town was peaceful and quiet. Zelda looked ahead and saw some workers raising a frame of a large building on the right side of the "road." She stopped and watched as they held and bolted the frame into place, noticing a familiar head of hair doing some of the heavier lifting.

Link was holding up the weight of the wall as workers attached the roof plate to the frame. She could see his back muscles, tense against the weight of the wall. Groose was up precariously perched on a ladder and was also working hard on finishing the final wall of the building.

After several minutes, the workers seemed to decide they were done for the day and began walking towards their camp inside the Sealed Temple. Zelda waited for Link to see her and then approached him.

"Link, I brought you a fruit! I knew you'd be tired and I didn't know if you had packed enough…" Zelda trailed off as Link approached. She hadn't seen him shirtless since the end of the Goddess's mission and so she hadn't ever seen his… newly developed muscles.

She tried to resist the urge to stare at him when she handed him the fruit. I_ knew he was strong but man… he looks so fit it's like he's part god or something, now,_ she thought, blushing. She immediately shook her head. She needed to keep her cool.

"Thanks, I needed it," Link breathed. He took a large bite. A few seconds later, still chewing, he asked, "How was today?"

She flicked her golden hair behind her shoulders. "Oh, I didn't do much. Got my wedding dress all planned and started. Don't go in the dining hall at the academy tonight if you know what's good for you…" She interlaced her fingers in his and looked up at him. "Karane agreed to play our Goddess! We're still working out details for the ceremony."

The forest was now glowing with the mysterious aura of twilight. They stopped walking near the tree where Link's supplies lay and turned to face each other. They stood alone in the dim evening light. Link finished the fruit and looked down at Zelda. "That's great news. I'm sure it'll be nice, no matter what." He scratched his dirty blonde hair and looked into her eyes. "Nothing can ruin it as long as I'm with you."

Zelda smiled as he leaned in to kiss her. Just as his lips brushed against her warm cheek, his ears twitched and he suddenly shifted into a protective position in front of Zelda, drawing his sword from his back. "Get back, Zel, against the tree!"

She did as he said and backed up, terrified, as he whirled around into a fighting stance. His ears twitched again and she watched as he swiftly leapt into some tall grass to the right, holding his sword with both hands. A shadowy creature emerged and crossed blades with the hero. They sparred for a moment until Link knocked the creature over with a spin attack. She watched as there was a flash of silver, followed by the screaming sound of a monster dying, and then saw a small puff of dark energy as something exploded in the grass beneath Link's blade. He stood completely still, listening for others, and sheathed his sword only after a minute. He turned back and looked at her with exhaustion stained in his blue eyes. She gulped as he approached, "Link, what was—"

He cut her off once again with a tight hug and another one of his mind-numbing kisses. After a moment, he parted from her lips and put his forehead against hers. "It was just a stray bakoblin. Probably just curious about us. But it was so close to you. I couldn't risk it," he said quietly, his voice still a little shaky. "By the way, you really look beautiful today."

Zelda blushed and cupped her hands onto his cheeks. "Link…" She dared to move her gaze downwards and for the first time she noticed the collection of scars on his body. She paused, looking at them. They ranged in severities but the most impressive was the large jagged scar that cut across his abdomen. She had seen the psychological effects that the quest had on him since they reunited, but up until now, he had hid most of any evidence of physical trauma.

She swallowed back tears. "You've done so much to protect me. You know, this is the first time I've actually seen you fight something…. I can't believe you beat it so fast. But I can only imagine how many monsters you had to face to get to this point." Her hand softly touched the large scar upon Link's chest that Demise had so thoughtfully cursed him with. He flinched slightly at her cool touch. Her hand lightly traced the mark until it ended and she found it resting near his left pectoral. "You've suffered so much."

He looked away. "I'm sorry I have so many scars. I know they're ugly,"

She shook her head. "No, Link, they're just a part of you now," She sniffed. "They aren't ugly, they tell your story. I… I don't think I'll ever be able to repay you for the pain I've caused." Her hand gently pressed against the skin covering his heart. She could faintly feel it swiftly beating under her palm. She felt tears starting to stream down her cheeks. "You'll always be amazing to me, Link, inside and out."

The sun was becoming dangerously close to the horizon and Link knew that they would be losing light soon. He held Zelda in his arms as she quietly cried, unsure about what to say.

After a minute he found some words. "Zel, I don't want you to feel guilty. You know I would do anything to keep you safe. I guess this is just my proof," He smiled. "Please don't cry. I'm here, I'm healthy, I'm alive, and I love you. That's all that matters."

She lightly smiled through her tears. "Link, I never want you to have to go through anything like that again. I promise to help and protect you in any way I can from now on." Her crying slowly dissipated as they embraced.

Link reluctantly released her before he whistled for his Loftwing. "I think it's safe to say that we'll be just fine as long as we're together." As the Crimson bird landed, he helped Zelda onto its back before gathering his things and jumping on its back. "I think there's going to be a full moon tonight."

Zelda looked over her shoulder and smiled at Link. "Sounds like a perfect time for night flying."

Link grinned. The activity was banned from academy students yet he and Zelda had often snuck out to fly in the moonlight over the years. "My favorite kind of flying." He patted the bird's back. "What do you think?"

The bird chirped happily and rose into the twilight sky, carrying the couple into a sea of glittering stars.


	5. Chapter 5: Home

**Chapter 5: Home**

Zelda frantically tried to keep all of the different questions coming at her at once straight. She was seated on the table inside the academy and listening to her bridal party. The older women were sewing some of the more intricate details of the wedding gown that hung nearby while Karane, Orielle, Piper, and little Kukiel talked with the bride. Karane, playing the Goddess in the ceremony, was the head of the party and so she was helping Zelda make decisions while the other women fired questions at her.

"Do you want the lanterns to be the same blue as your Loftwing?"

"What colors do you want incorporated into the decorations?"

"Where are you even going to have the ceremony, down there?"

"Will there be cake?"

"I WANT CAKE!"

Karane silenced the group. "The bride will answer one question at a time. We don't want to overwhelm her." She looked at Zelda. "What do you have to input, bride?"

Zelda touched her finger to her lip. "Well…. To your lantern question, I'd like the ones sent to the Goddess to be white, in honor of the Goddess's representational color… For the luminaries leading to the ceremony and signaling the forest's best landing spot, I want blue and red, like our Loftwings." She smiled. "I think gold and white colored decorations at the ceremony would be pretty."

"Alright, we have our color scheme. So, where on the surface…Hyrule… do you want to have it?"

Zelda thought about it for a moment. "There is… a great tree. It's not too far from the town we're building. There are some pretty ruins behind it that lead deeper into the woods and a small pool of water at the tree's base. I'd like to have it there, in that clearing, I think." She kicked her dangling legs a little. "The Kikwi tribe can help us make the path there easily accessible from the town. We can clear a trail."

Karane nodded. "I'll tell Pipit to maybe check it out while he's on guard duty. What was the next thing on the list?"

"Cake!" squeaked Kukiel, excitedly.

Zelda giggled and looked at Piper. She knew that she would be in charge of creating that since she made the food in the bazaar. "Piper, I'd like a cake, if you can make one, please. The only requirements I really have are that it will be pretty and taste delicious." The woman smiled and nodded, happy to accept the task for the girl.

"Now, as for the wedding customs…. "Karane began asking about the details of the ceremony and who would be a part of it.

"…And of course, we'll need to have a practice the day before," she wrapped up after several minutes. Zelda nodded and turned to look at her dress's progress.

She gasped.

It looked beautiful, and it was only half done. The women had finished the main skirt and were finishing up sewing the decorative skirts and bodice pieces. The pale purple and blue feathers her Loftwing had shed for her were still unattached, but Zelda could visualize where they were to be placed. The women had told her that they had a special surprise for her when they finished.

Zelda beamed and began to help Karane, Kukiel, and Orielle create the paper lanterns and luminaries that would be lit at the party on her wedding night.

…

Link laid under his tree on the surface, once again tired. It was another hot day and he had already helped the Skyloftians build two houses without a break. Groose had forced him to leave and take a rest. He only now realized how worn out he was from the difficult work. It was no wonder Fi had to constantly remind him about the percentage of his dwindling health and stamina, whatever that meant.

He began drifting off to sleep only to wake at the sound of approaching footsteps.

"Pipit," Link greeted, sleepily.

The senior student nodded in greeting and crossed his arms. "Hey Link. Exhausted? It's always good to get some rest. It'll keep you going in the long run." He looked around. "This is my first time down here. I have to tell you, it really takes my breath away. It's so big and there are so many trees!"

Link smiled. "There are a lot more than trees down here. I hope you'll go exploring sometime soon."

Pipit hesitated. "Yes… I think that would be quite an experience." He turned to the Goddess statue. "I'm here to fulfill the honor of guarding the Triforce this afternoon for the first time."

Link yawned. "Well, it's up there. Go see what the knights want you to do," He flipped his green hat over his eyes. "I'm taking a nap. Do me a favor and watch over me as well."

Pipit shook his head. "Napping as always. Some things never change, Link. I'll keep an eye on you." He whistled and his Loftwing landed in the clearing.

Link listened as the birds flaps faded away and rolled to his side, holding his sword sheath next to him close to his body. He quickly fell into sleep's welcoming embrace.

_Another dream. _

This time, he watched from behind a magic diamond barrier as Ghirahim performed his sadistic ritual on Zelda. He winced as he heard her painful screams but he was trapped behind the wall and could not run to save her. Suddenly, Pipit leapt out of nowhere and began running down the spiral shaped land and cutting through monsters. He watched as Pipit quickly made it to Ghirahim and faced off against the demon. To his horror, he watched as Pipit was struck by the demon's blade and fell to his knees. Link remembered when he had once fell the same way as he was struck by Ghirahim. It was as if he was watching himself battle. He tried to break through the diamonds to aid Pipit, but nothing happened. Groose then manifested by his side, controlling the Groosenator, but the machine was firing harmless meowing remlits at the fashionable demon. Link growled in frustration as nothing was stopping Demise from taking Zelda's soul…

Link opened his eyes as the faint sunlight of Faron woods filtered through the trees. He covered his face with his hands and took a deep breath. _These nightmares need to stop,_ he thought, frustrated with his mind.

He sat up and stretched, glancing up at the Goddess statue as he did so. At this angle, he could only see Pipit's yellow hat positioned near where the sacred Triforce was hidden. He knew Zelda was safe in Skyloft.

He blinked. Zelda hadn't been having nightmares lately. _Maybe the wedding is keeping her mind off of everything, _he reasoned. Perhaps tying the knot would also aid in curing him of his residual worries, but even so, the thought of living on the surface near stray monsters only added to his anxieties. Of course, Skyloft had always had some Keese and Chus living in the waterfall cave, but no one except the children were seriously afraid of them. Down in Hyrule, there were all sorts of creatures waiting to be discovered.

It was both exciting and terrifying.

Link believed his dream was warning him of the dangers his friends could potentially face by leaving the safe haven of Skyloft. Even though the evil had been destroyed, there were still some stray monsters residing on the surface that could possibly cause some problems. There were many knights that could protect the settlers, of course, but Link still worried about it.

Link glanced over at the builders and watched as more framing was raised into place. They were building the town exceptionally fast. At this pace, it would be ready to have people move in within a few weeks. He went to Groose, who was taking a water break of his own.

"You know, Link, maybe you should take the rest of the day off to help Zelda. It's your wedding too, bud." Groose said before chugging some water out of his glass bottle.

"Are you sure? We've been moving at such a great pace."

Groose nodded. "Go ahead. Pipit already agreed to take your spot when his shift is done. Which will be soon. He wants to start work on his own house."

Link smiled. He had already constructed the framing for his and Zelda's future home. It just needed put together, and he could do that another day. There was still time. "Thanks, Groose."

He headed to the clearing near the Goddess Bird Statue nearby and whistled for his Loftwing to retrieve him.

…

Zelda had just finished shopping at the bazaar. She placed her bags on a bench outside to alter her grip on the handles when she felt herself being pulled into a surprise attack hug from behind.

"Link! You nearly scared me to death!" She laughed and playfully hit him. He just grinned back. "Look what I got," she exclaimed excitedly, turning to her bags.

She pulled out a large strip of white fabric and some red and yellow thread. "I'm going to design a crest for Hyrule. I'm thinking I'll make it look kind of like the design on your sailcloth but with the Triforce added somewhere. We can use it as a banner in our house and maybe eventually put it in the castle somewhere!"

Link chuckled. "That castle isn't going to be done for a very long time. We'll be so old we might not even remember to put it up."

Zelda stuck her tongue out at him. "Did they let you take a break today?"

Link nodded and scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Yea… Apparently I've been working too hard down there and not enough up here."

Zelda laughed. "Well, you do need to try on what you'll be wearing in the wedding anyways. You can't just wear your normal knight uniform if you're the groom," she added, eyeing his weathered green tunic.

"Yes, yes. I'll do it. What do _you_ need help with today?" He asked.

She looked around thoughtfully, then said, "Well, the preparations should be done within the week. But we still need to formally invite everyone! Karane and I already wrote all the invitations last night. Can you deliver them for me?"

Link nodded. "Of course!"

They went back to the knight academy and retrieved the stack of delicately rolled parchment invitations. Link then kissed her before leaving to go deliver the invitations to everyone in the town and on the nearby islands.

Zelda sighed and sat on her bed. The preparations were nearing completion. She didn't want too many decorations for her wedding because she wanted Hyrule's beauty to provide the natural atmosphere she wanted. Her bridal party would finish her dress within a few days and Link's clothes were already done. Piper would whip up the cake the day prior. All that was really left to do was practice the ceremony and set it up. After the ceremony would be the all-night party followed by her and Link's vacation departure.

They had one week until the date they set. Zelda could barely contain her excitement. It was all she was thinking about. She picked up a brush and combed her long hair and then realized that, in her excitement, she had neglected to help out with the construction on the surface.

She frowned and put down her brush. Link had been doing back-breaking work while she was in sitting around in la-la land about the wedding. She couldn't forget her responsibilities as a citizen of Skyloft. Pulling her hair back in her usual low ponytail, Zelda opened her window latch and whistled. Her Loftwing appeared outside and she gracefully jumped out the window and onto its back. "We're going to the surface to see how everything is going," Zelda told her bird.

She landed and slid off her Loftwing near the Sealed Temple and walked towards the town. A Kikwi welcomed her and guided her to the newest house being constructed. Pipit was up on the roof, pounding nails, while Cawlin and Groose installed the wall boards. Pipit looked up from his work. "Why, look who it is! The Lovely Zelda!" He removed his floppy yellow cap briefly in greeting. "What occasion gives us the grace of your presence?"

She smiled at his gushing chivalry. "Hello everyone. I've decided to help today. Whose house is this?"

"Mine," declared Pipit proudly. "And perhaps Karane's as well in the future."

This statement was followed by an exceptionally loud bang on the wall board. Zelda looked over to see Cawlin, hammer in hand, scowling at the wall board. He continued his hammering, mumbling something Zelda couldn't hear.

Zelda returned her attention back to Pipit. "Lovely. Anything I can do to help?"

Pipit wiped the sweat off his forehead and looked around. Unfortunately, unlike Link, he had failed to realize how hot the surface was before charging into intense manual labor. "Well, we can start building that house when we finish mine," He pointed to a pile of framing already pieced together that just needed assembled into a house. It was lying across the grass "road" from Pipit's house. "Actually, Link put all of that framing together himself. I think… I think it's going to be _your_ house." He looked at the Spirit Maiden. "Are you sure you want to help?"

Zelda stepped over to the pile of framing and bent over to touch a stud. She ran her fingers down it until she found Eldin ore bolts. "Our… home," She whispered and suddenly felt very excited. "Yes, I want to piece it together. Link has done enough. It's _our_ home anyways."

She sat in the grass and waited until the boys had finished constructing Pipit's house. She was glad she had chosen to wear pants and a short sleeved tunic today since it was hot and she would most likely be getting dirty. She watched as Pipit's cute little house finished taking shape.

The homes were very basic, only consisting of a single room with a gable roof and a few windows, so they were built quickly. The Gorons were constructing the fireplaces and chimneys for the houses one home at a time. The residents of the houses would have to finish covering the exterior with stone or brick and even expand the homes, if desired, on their own.

The boys took a short break before beginning work on Zelda's house. She instructed them where she believed Link had intended the pieces to be and then began hammering in bolts and nails.

Several hours later, the sun was beginning to set. Zelda was on the roof finishing up pounding nails on the shingles. She hopped off and watched as Pipit delicately installed the final window's covering into place.

She stood back to look at their work. Link had constructed the framing perfectly, so the house looked very neat and cute. He had carved the roof's rafters in such a way that they curved delicately away from the ridge. There were also detailed pieces of trim on the outside of the door. It was the cutest, most beautiful creation he had ever crafted, and she herself got to help put the final product together. She almost cried. "It's beautiful."

Groose, Cawlin, and Pipit stood back as well. "Link was always good at carving. He should've been an architect. Missed his caling," Pipit said, amused.

"Yeah, he's just the chosen hero instead. What a bummer," commented Groose.

Zelda smiled at the creation and skipped inside before proceeding to sit on the wood floor. "Look at this! It's my house!" She was giddy with glee. There wasn't even any furniture or decorations inside but she was looking at it as if it were a diamond ring.

The boys laughed and gathered their things to go back to the Sealed Temple for the night. Zelda and Pipit called their birds to fly back to Skyloft together.

"You know Zelda, I'm going to pop the question to Karane, but I'm going to wait until after your wedding and the excitement dies down. We don't want to steal your thunder or anything," Pipit said as they glided on their Loftwings. "Don't you dare tell her!"

Zelda squealed. "Don't worry, I won't! I'm so happy for you! I'm sure she'll say yes."

Pipit's face flushed and he cleared his throat. "Thanks, Zelda."

They landed and Zelda walked back to the academy. She was surprised to find Link sitting on the steps inside the door, finishing up his, most likely, sixth bowl of pumpkin soup.

"Link, if you keep eating that much, you'll gain weight. You aren't running around as much as you used to," Zelda scolded playfully as she ruffled his shaggy hair upon entering.

Link looked up at her defensively. "Hey, I've been doing a lot of lifting lately. Where have you been all afternoon?"

Zelda smiled and showed him her dirty hands. "Lifting some things…" She walked off to wash her hands in the kitchen before Link could respond.

She was thankful her wedding dress was now hidden in her room so that Link could go in and out of the kitchen freely. He followed her and sat down at the table. "You were helping to build the town?" He asked before slurping a spoonful of soup.

She nodded. "Yep! Guess what, our house is done!" She turned to see his face.

He blinked in surprise, swallowing his mouthful of soup. "Really? Do you think it looks okay? I kind of made all the carving decisions on my own…"

Zelda shook her head. "It's beautiful, Link, and don't you go thinking otherwise." She found the cauldron of soup and dipped the ladle in to capture some of her own, then sat beside Link with her bowl. "Did you do everything you needed to do today?" she asked, and he nodded. She unexpectedly gave him a tight hug. "Only one more week until we can go home."

Link blushed, and then burped in response.

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**A/N: Woooo! The next chapter will be the final preparations and the wedding ceremony! I'm so excited to share it! :) Also, if you can't tell from my little hints, I love Ghirahim's creeperness. What will the wedding be like? See you on the flip side!**


	6. Chapter 6: Final Preparations

**Chapter 6: Final Preparations**

"Today's the day. It's your wedding day! Wake up, princess!" Karane cheered over the partition to awaken her sleeping roommate.

Zelda rolled over and opened her eyes. Sunlight spilled in through her open window. She sat up quickly. "What time is it?"

"Just a little after sunrise. You said you wanted up bright and early. It'll take a while for everything to be set up, and if you want the ceremony to start before dinner we have to be up this early."

Zelda yawned and got ready for the day. She slipped into her Goddess dress to temporarily wear so she could change into her wedding gown later. The girls grabbed the bags of decorations from Karane's half of the room and slipped out of the academy. They walked to the plaza and found Pipit who had agreed to be the "Ancient Hero," the male role that complimented the Goddess, in the ceremony. He was dressed in his usual knightly attire at the moment.

"My bird can carry some of the supplies down. Fledge and Groose are already down there with the long benches we borrowed from the academy classroom," Pipit said as he took the girls' bags and fastened them to his Loftwing. The girls nodded and leapt off the ledge onto their Loftwings.

When they arrived in the clearing of Faron Woods, Karane gasped. She had been at the practice the evening before but had not had the chance to fully appreciate the beauty of the woods in the morning sunlight.

The birds landed gracefully around the ruined stairs that led to the passage to the Deep Woods. Before them stood the mighty tree surrounded by a small pool of sparkling blue water. There was a small clearing between the pool and the ruins where Groose and Fledge were busily moving chairs and benches into ranks. Zelda and Karane unloaded the bags from the birds while Pipit went over to help move chairs.

"This is perfect," Zelda said, looking at the chairs facing the ruins. "The ceremony can be set up right in front of these ruins. The weather is perfect today too," She smiled and unpacked some of the paper lanterns to place in the nearby trees.

After placing a few paper lanterns in the surrounding trees and setting the blue and red paper luminaries along a path between the town and the location, Zelda looked over the setup and approved it. Karane then told her it was time to go back to Skyloft so she and the boys could finish decorating the area while Zelda prepared.

Zelda landed in front of the academy and found the rest of her bridal party in the dining room chatting. Upon seeing her, they squealed in delight. "It's the bride," exclaimed Mallara. "Everything is ready. I think Pipit already took your cake down this morning."

Zelda nodded. "I will never be able to thank you all enough for helping me out."

Orielle smiled. "Anything for the new Princess of Hyrule."

A small flush covered Zelda's cheeks. She knew the people were looking to her as their leader now. She would have to get used to it. "Link is out of here, right?"

Piper laughed. "He's out. We heard Fledge pounding on his door to get up earlier. I think he flew somewhere down on the surface so he could meditate in peace…"

Zelda snorted. _Yea right, he was probably going to take a nap at one of the secret springs…_

"I made lunch," said Henya as she pulled out some kind of concoction that had been cooking in the fireplace.

After eating with the women, Orielle and Zelda went to Zelda's room to fetch the wedding gown from her wardrobe. The women had been hiding it in there after they finished work on it each day. Zelda had avoided looking at it so she could be surprised on the day of her wedding. She changed into the gown and practically squealed in delight. It was everything she imagined it would look like and more. Orielle helped her put the complicated dress on. When the last zipper was fastened, Zelda looked down at herself.

The dress looked fit for a princess. The main creamy white skirt puffed out elegantly and a small train glided behind her. The white folds of the skirt were covered by a smaller sheath of glittery white fabric that cascaded down over her hips from her waist and wrapped around the back. The edges of these pieces were lined with gold. Her waist was accented by tiny gold colored gem stones where the bodice connected to the skirts. Her bodice was fitted to her figure and accented by a sweetheart neckline. But what really struck Zelda were the feathers.

The feathers of her Loftwing wrapped from the small of her back to her waist and curved up until they reached her neckline, where they accented the curves of her chest elegantly. The feathers had been completely dyed white, a sacred style that had only been ever worn by the Goddess herself in legends. She looked at her veil. A small golden tiara would slide onto her head and allow the long veil to cascade in front of her eyes—and eventually, her hair. Some small white feathers were fastened delicately to the tiara above where her ears rested.

Zelda smiled and then found some golden sandals she had in her wardrobe. She then put on a gold necklace that had been her mother's before she died.

Zelda spin around, looking at herself in the mirror. "It's absolutely gorgeous!" She hugged Orielle. "I must thank everyone else as well!"

She picked up her skirts, stepped outside her room, and flew down the steps, her train flowing sophisticatedly behind her. Orielle followed. When she arrived in the dining room, the women cooed over her and admired their work.

"It's gorgeous! You look beautiful!"

"It fits you perfectly!"

"Link might legitimately faint when he sees you..."

"YOU LOOK LIKE A…PRINCESS!"

Zelda scooped up Kukiel and hugged the child. "I just want to thank everyone for making this dress and helping with everything for my wedding. It's going to be lovely, all thanks to everyone who has helped. I hope you all have fun tonight!"

They heard a door open followed by a squeal of delight. Karane excitedly ran in from the hallway and beheld Zelda in her gown. "Zelda…I'm going to cry. Oh my goodness you're gorgeous! You really are a goddess!" She covered her mouth as she looked at the beautiful dress. "I can't believe you designed this!"

Zelda grinned. "Thank you, Karane. I can't wait to see you, and everyone else, dressed up as well." She turned to everyone. "I still have to arrange my hair and put on some make-up. I'll be in my room taking care of that." Zelda began walking towards the steps and Karane quickly followed, picking up the train so she could help Zelda prepare.

…

Meanwhile, at the Skyview Spring, Link was awakened as his Loftwing splashed some water on his face. "Hey, I'm up," he groaned as he sat up.

Fledge had awakened him at dawn (_waaaay too early_ for Link) so Zelda could utilize the entire academy to get ready in privacy. After all, it was a bad omen to see the bride dressed up before the wedding.

Link stretched. He had flown here because it wasn't too far from where he would need to be soon, and he knew it was a quiet place where he could get a few more hours of sleep. Upon landing, he had allowed his Loftwing to sit beside the spring, curled up against its warm red feathers, and peacefully fallen asleep. But now his Loftwing had decided to dip its beak in the water and drip water all over his face.

He stood up and wiped his wet cheeks with his hand and sniffed. Looking up, he took note of the angle of the sun. It was past midday. He had slept through lunch again. Luckily he had packed some food along with the garments he was to wear at the wedding.

He pulled a dinner roll and some fruit out of his bag. He wasn't very concerned about being hungry later since the townspeople were all bringing food to share after the wedding ceremony. After finishing the food, he reached into his pouch and took out the Goddess Harp. Closing his eyes, he began playing some of the songs he had learned on his quest. His Loftwing quietly rested behind him.

After a while, Link got up and decided to wash himself in the spring so he would smell nice for the ceremony. He then changed into his ceremonial wedding garb. It had been made by Zelda's bridal party. Apparently it matched her dress well. When he had tried it on at the academy, the women gushed all over how handsome he looked.

He fixed his cuffs and bowtie and then turned to his Loftwing. "Well, what do you think?" The bird looked at him and then nuzzled his outstretched hand. Link smiled at the bird's approval. Even his Loftwing had been outfitted with a large gold bowtie.

He had been given white tapered pants and shiny white dress shoes. He wore a white long sleeved dress shirt with a satin golden vest over it alongside a matching bow tie. He put on a white suit coat as well.

Now all he had to do was comb out his shaggy hair. He went over and grabbed a comb out of his bag and combed out all of the tangles in his dirty-blonde locks. He usually didn't care much about what his hair looked like, but today was different. He wanted to look his best for his bride.

After he felt like he could do no more damage, he picked up his things and hopped on his Loftwing. "Let's go make sure everything is ready." As they took off, he felt his nerves beginning to rise.

…

The afternoon heat was beginning to lift as the sun slowly set and Zelda carefully mounted her blue Loftwing. Her bird was wearing its usual gold necklace but also had sparkly white streams of fabric trailing off of its tail. She was to fly to her staged position before the ceremony. Her father mounted his Loftwing behind her and then they both soared off together towards the surface.

She and her father landed at the Bird Statue near the Sealed Grounds, the spot where she told her guests to land. Gaepora commented that he liked the luminaries. Zelda's bird walked behind her as they followed the trail of small paper containers with flickering candlelight inside. The trail alternated between blue and red luminaries in honor of her and Link's Loftwing breeds and the Loftwings that carried the knights of Skyloft.

They walked quietly through the emerging town. Karane and Pipit were waiting for them under the Goddess statue, holding hands and talking. Karane turned. She was wearing a dress that looked very similar to Zelda's pink Goddess dress, except it was gold. Pipit was in his knight uniform but had added gold shoulder plates and a long white scarf. They did indeed look like the Goddess and Ancient Chosen Hero. Zelda complemented them before they continued their journey. They led the bride and her father to an area near the great tree but out of sight of the guests that were arriving in the area. Zelda's bird flew ahead to find Link's Loftwing. Karane and Pipit left to gather those who were in the ceremony. The bridal party would soon be staging with Zelda.

Zelda was now alone with her father. She looked up at him and fixed his bowtie. "Father, thank you for everything. I'm so happy to be standing here with you right now, and I love you."

Her father smiled and placed his hands on her bare shoulders. He then moved her veil in front of her face. "Zelda, you couldn't have a more proud father. I love you too, and if you ever need me I will always be here to support you. I know you'll treat Link well, and he has already proved his love for you. I will gladly accept him as a son." He sniffed, his face becoming red. "My baby girl is getting married. You look beautiful. I bet your mother is watching us right now."

Zelda smiled. "I'm sure she is, Papa! I want you to enjoy tonight. Remember, I may be growing up and getting married, but I'm always your daughter. I won't be far away." She hugged her father.

Karane returned along with Kukiel, who was dressed in white and holding a basket of gold painted flower petals. "Everyone is staged. I'll be watching for the signal." Karane then handed her a bouquet of Ancient Flowers that she had constructed at the request of Link. "For you," she said.

Zelda accepted the flowers, remembering Link's adorable proposal. Everything was perfect. She was thrilled to finally be marrying her best friend, her hero. She could hardly wait as she heard the music start.


	7. Chapter 7: A Beautiful Wedding

**A/N: AAAAAHHH LAST CHAPTER! Here we go! For those of you who have stayed with this story to this point, thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy this final, fluffy chapter. 3**

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**Chapter 7: A Beautiful Wedding**

Link nervously walked down the aisle alongside Professor Owlan. As he didn't have living parents, he had asked one of his teachers to have the honor of escorting him.

He glanced from side to side. Pretty much everyone from Skyloft had made it. He didn't even know how he felt. He was so happy yet nervous and excited at the same time. All he knew was that his anxiety level was through the roof.

The knights from Skyloft were all posted around the perimeter of the event, doing their duty to protect the people. The citizens sat, smiling at Link as he reached the end of the isle. He now stood alone in front of the ruins, looking back at his fellow townspeople.

The musicians from the Lumpy Pumpkin were providing the music. Kina was singing traditional Skyloftian wedding songs along with the instrumentalists. Groose and Orielle now proceeded down the aisle together, both dressed very nicely. Groose stood on Link's left and Orielle stood to his right. After more academy students proceeded, Pipit and Karane began walking down with their arms linked together as they stepped. The song shifted to the Ballad of the Goddess as they walked. Link smiled. It was a little strange hearing that song played at his wedding when the lyrics spoke about his great mission.

The couple stopped and turned around just as the verse ended. Karane raised her arms as Pipit fell to his knee with his ceremonial sword pointed downward. "Here me now, I stand in for the goddess and offer her blessings upon the wedding and for the couple," She gestured to Pipit who kneeled in front of her and he placed his hand in hers, still looking down. "And may Skyloft ever be protected by the spirit of the ancient hero." Pipit rose and sheathed the sword.

It was a practice that had always been done at weddings, but only now did the depth of the ritual become apparent. Link remembered when Zelda had blessed his sword, allowing him to protect the world from evil. This wedding tradition had been a way that the word of the prophecy stayed alive over the years.

Pipit then stood to his immediate left and Karane to his right, leaving a place for Zelda and her father to stand. The music shifted to the traditional Skyloft wedding song. Link took a deep breath as he prepared to see his bride.

Little Kukiel started adorably walking down the aisle, throwing golden petals awkwardly along the path. The sun was low in the sky now, casting a golden glow upon the ceremony and reflecting in the grooves of the leaves. The citizens giggled at how cute she was as they turned their heads to look at the aisle.

Suddenly, Link saw her and he almost gasped. His bride, escorted by the headmaster that would marry them, stepped out from behind the great tree and began walking down the aisle.

She was absolutely beautiful. He didn't even think "beautiful" was a good enough word to describe her. The music seemed to become muted and even time slowed down.

Her hair was freely flowing behind her and had been combed perfectly straight so that it appeared to look like silk. Her veil covered her face but he could still see her smiling. And her dress… he couldn't even describe it. It was the most gorgeous dress he had ever seen, and while it was bathed in the golden light, it looked even more beautiful. He barely even noticed the flowers she carried. As she made her way up to Link, even the audience seemed awed by her beauty.

Link heard a thump as their Loftwings landed on top of the ruins behind them and stood together over their riders protectively.

Zelda's father passed Link and stood between him and Zelda, facing the audience. He cleared his throat as the music ended and opened up one of his ancient texts. Link could only grin back as Zelda looked at him and they took each other's hands. He was glad he didn't have to say anything for a few minutes because at the moment he was absolutely speechless. He could tell that she was a little flustered as well.

"Dearly beloved, we have gathered here today, in beautiful Hyrule, to witness the wedding of Link and Zelda." He went on, citing some of the ancient texts and reading the Goddess's words on love and commitment. He finally reached the vows and turned to Link. "Do you, Link, promise to protect Zelda, always care for her in sickness and in health, bring her closer to the Goddesses, and be a loving, faithful husband?"

"I do," Link managed to get out without his voice cracking. His heart was pounding.

Gaepora turned to his daughter. "And do you, Zelda, promise to protect Link, always care for him in sickness and in health, bring him closer to the Goddesses, and be a loving, faithful wife?"

"I do," Zelda said, smiling.

Link and Zelda now kneeled before Gaepora. Pipit and Karane stepped forward. Gaepora turned to the audience. "And do you, as a town, promise to protect this marriage and aid these young ones if anything disrupts their vows?"

The crowd responded with a jumbled, "We do."

Karane and Pipit extended their arms, handing Zelda and Link rings before they stepped back to their respective spots. The couple stood. Link slid the diamond ring on Zelda's finger and then she did the same to him. They smiled at each other. Link had been able to have Scrapper the robot retrieve the diamonds from the desert.

"Link. Zelda." Gaepora closed the book. "I am very honored and proud to say that you are now husband and wife. Link, you may kiss the bride." The end of his sentence was slightly drowned out as the crowd began clapping and cheering.

Link grinned as he flipped Zelda's veil to the back of her head. He looked at her beautiful smiling face for a second before slowly leaning in to kiss his wife. They hugged and broke apart after a few seconds. Music began playing and the couple walked down to the end of the aisle together while their company followed.

At the end of the aisle, Zelda embraced Link in another hug, "I love you, Link," she said into his ear.

"I love you too, Zelda. Always have, always will," he responded. By now the rest of the wedding party had arrived and were congratulating the new couple. Link gave many "thank yous" but was still in a daze over what had just happened.

After a few minutes, Karane and Pipit went to uncover the food everyone had brought that was spread on some tables. There was to be a dinner and then cake.

Link didn't get a chance to eat a lot, as Zelda dragged him around to talk to every single guest at the wedding. He didn't mind though, as long as he was with her.

Finally, after getting a small amount of rolls, meat, and vegetables, Zelda decided it was time to cut the cake. Piper had outdone herself. The entirely white cake was tiered and fancy icing flowers dotted the edges. Two little people that resembled Link and Zelda holding hands stood at the top. Upon further study, Zelda realized that Link had carved their wedding topper.

She turned to him. "When… when did you do this?" He only laughed in response.

They both held the handle of the knife and cut the first piece of cake together. They then cut enough for everyone in Skyloft to eat.

After everyone had their fill of food and cake, the citizens sat around on the benches, chairs, and even nearby boulders to talk. Nightfall was almost upon them. Karane and Pipit began handing out the paper lanterns that would be launched into the sky. Link and Zelda received theirs last.

As night fell and the stars debuted over their heads, Link and Zelda lit their lantern with the small torch Karane carried throughout the crowd. Link looked at Zelda, seeing her face dimly lit in the flickering light of the sky lantern. She smiled back at him and nodded. They released the white lantern into the sky and everyone watched as it raised into the blackness. Slowly, more and more lanterns were released until the sky was filled with the glowing balloons.

Link sat next to Zelda looking at the pretty sight. Her head rested on his shoulder as they quietly looked up at the lantern spectacle in wonder. Her hands were clasped in his.

It was all for them.

Suddenly Zelda held out her arm towards one of the unlit, round paper lanterns hanging in a nearby tree. Link looked at her curiously. "Zel, what are you…" He stopped talking as a small sparkle manifested out of Zelda's hand and flew towards the lantern. The lantern lit, followed by the one next to it, and the one next to that one, until all of the lanterns hanging in the trees surrounding the area were lit. The Skyloftians cheered at the new lighting.

"Still got some little magic abilities left," she muttered to Link. He smiled at her.

Suddenly, the music started again. Kina began singing one of her popular love songs. People began to move aside as Groose and Fledge moved the benches and chairs to the edge of the area, creating a dancing area.

Link stood and held his hand out to Zelda. She took it and they headed to the dancing area. They began slowly dancing together. Zelda wrapped her arms around Link's neck and he placed his hands on her waist.

They slowly swayed back and forth. This was their first dance together and all they could do was look into each other's eyes and smile. They didn't even care if the whole town was watching them dance.

Several minutes later, the song ended and the instrumentalists started a lighthearted, faster song. Link twirled Zelda around to the tempo and finally looked to the side. He found Pipit and smiled at him. Pipit turned and asked Karane to dance, and soon the couple joined the newlyweds in their dancing. Slowly, more and more people joined in the dancing until the entire town was dancing under the stars in Hyrule.

At one point, Zelda went to dance with her father. Link took the opportunity to sit down on a bench and catch his breath. Groose approached him. "Congratulations, Mr. Hero," he said as he slapped his shoulder. "Where are you and Zelda going to escape for your little honeymoon?"

Link smiled mischievously. "Isn't that supposed to be a secret?"

Groose laughed. "Oh come on, you can tell me." Link simply shook his head in response. Groose smirked and then got up to go find his buddies.

Several people came to chat with Link while Zelda danced with her father. Link kind of wished he had a parent to dance with, but he decided that as long as he had Zelda, he would be happy.

Zelda soon came back and took Link's hand, dragging him to the dancing area. They found a large group of all the academy students and danced together with them. They laughed as some of the Professors jumped in to dance in the middle of them.

Link enjoyed himself and forgot the anxieties that had built up before the ceremony. He simply reveled in every second he spent dancing with the love of his life. Zelda didn't stop smiling or giggling the entire night. It was magical.

Several hours later, Link noticed Zelda was becoming a little tired. He was glad too, because his feet were hurting pretty badly. They walked to the edge of the clearing and sat on a bench under the glow of the paper lanterns. The Skyloftians were still partying just as intensely. Some of the older citizens seemed to be getting their second wind, it seemed. Link and Zelda, however, felt exhausted.

Pipit noticed the couple and jogged over. He leaned in close to Link's ear. "Your Loftwings have enough supplies packed to last a few days. They are currently perched under the Goddess Statue." The knight then returned to dancing with Karane.

Link looked at Zelda, who was yawning. She looked at him, tiredly. "I think I'm done dancing," she stated.

Link grinned. "Is it time for us to sneak off, as is tradition, Zel?"

She nodded. "Yes, it is." She placed her hand in his and the couple slipped away towards the Goddess Statue. They walked by the castle construction and through the small town. "I can't wait to start our lives here," she said. Link nodded.

Their Loftwings spotted them and landed near the couple. "Can I ride with you, Link?" Zelda asked. He nodded and she turned to pet her bird. "Sorry, friend. I want you to fly with us still." The bird nuzzled its rider's cheek.

Link helped Zelda step up onto his Crimson Loftwing and then climbed up behind her. They took off, Zelda's bird following close behind, and started flying.

"So… where are we going, anyways?" Zelda asked as the breeze whipped through her hair.

Link steered the bird in an arc towards the east. "You'll see."

They flew in the starlight for several minutes. The couple suddenly began descending in a grove of trees near the lake. Zelda immediately recognized the place.

This was where Link had proposed to her.

As the Loftwings gracefully landed in the clearing, Zelda realized that the lanterns were still hanging on the trees. She used her magic to light them all once again.

It was an enchanted oasis in the middle of the serene forest. The moonlight reflected off of Lake Floria beautifully. Zelda smiled. "I love this place. I'm glad we got to come back here," she said as Link helped her to dismount the bird. The Loftwings took off and landed on top of the waterfalls in the distance, where they curled up to sleep for the night.

Link held Zelda's hands in his. "Zelda, I just want you to know that you're beautiful. Tonight, and every night. And beautiful doesn't even cover how wonderful you are." He kissed her on the cheek as they walked to the edge of the lake.

"Link, stop it," Zelda teased. "You look really nice today too. I don't think I've ever seen you this dressed up. You clean up well." She smiled. "Who knew my hero was so handsome? I mean, you always are, but—" Link decided to kiss her again, and by doing so, completely destroyed her thought process.

Zelda turned her head and looked out over the still waters of the calm lake. There was no noise except for the distant rush of the waterfalls. They were completely alone again. She looked back at her new husband, who was looking at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes. She smiled before giving him a quick peck on the cheek. She parted from his arms before he could retaliate and bent over to take off her sandals. She then sat on the edge of the lake and stuck her feet in the water.

"What are you doing? You'll ruin your dress!" Link exclaimed, somewhat amused and honestly a bit disappointed the kissing had stopped.

Zelda shook her head and smiled. "No I won't. My feet hurt, and this feels really good."

She could be odd at times. Link loved that about her. He decided to sit with her. He rolled up his pant legs, took off his shoes, and stuck his feet in the lake as well. She was right, it did feel good after standing for so long.

"So… now what?" He asked, looking at her silhouette in the moonlight.

She smiled. "We enjoy our first night together as a married couple," Zelda said, poking his nose. She had done that when Link asked her silly questions as a child.

He smiled and wrapped an arm around her. "Alright. I can do that."

The couple stayed silent for a long time, enjoying the night together, before Link once again spoke. "Who came up with the idea to dye the feathers white?"

Zelda giggled. "I think it was Henya but I'm not sure. Hylia was said to wear them on her dress when she battled the demons."

Link nodded. "It's such a simple idea. White feathers, I mean. But they really made you look like a divine goddess. Especially in that evening light. You were stunning."

She looked at the profile of his face. He was staring distantly at the water. She noticed that he was beginning to have a little stubble on the tip of his chin. Probably because of the time of night. She noted that, somehow, he looked older. He was no longer that child who she poked in the nose. He was her husband. _And he knew how to be romantic. When did that even happen?_ she thought, amused.

She folded her knees and brought her feet back up to the grassy edge, turning with her body to face him. "Are we just going to sit here and complement each other all night?" She asked, lightly nudging him.

Link smiled. "We can." He then faced her and looked into her sparkling eyes.

"But we don't have to."

He brought her face close to his with his free hand and kissed her passionately. Their kiss deepened and they held each other closer as they let go of all of their worries. As long as Link had Zelda with him, nothing would ever scare him again. They were together, and that was all he ever needed.

A few white feathers lightly glided away from Zelda's dress and landed gracefully on the water. Rings of ripples spread from where the two feathers kissed the smooth surface and began their long voyage across the vast lake.

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**End**

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**A/N: And that's that! I hope you enjoyed! Thank you so much for staying with this story until the end. ^_^ When I began writing it, I intended it to be a one-shot or only up to two chapters. But it ended up being my longest fanfic so far! **

**Again, thank you for reading! 3 If you enjoyed it, please favorite or leave a review! I love feedback. :)**

**See you later, ~**

**~Missa**


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